SELF HEALING SYSTEMS IN AIRCRAFT

Contents:
1. Abstract
2. Introduction
3. Causes of aircraft failure
4. self-healing materials
5. types of healing polymers
6. self-healing concepts
7. Advantages
8. Disadvantages
9. Conclusion
10.Future scope
11.References

Abstract:
A new technique that mimics healing processes found in nature could enable
damaged aircraft to mend themselves automatically, even during a flight. Selfhealing materials are a class of materials that have the structurally incorporated
ability to repair damage caused by mechanical usage over time. The inspiration
comes from biological systems, which have the ability to heal after being
wounded. Initiation of cracks and other types of damage on an aircraft has been
shown to change thermal, electrical, and acoustical properties, and eventually lead
to whole scale failure of the aircraft sometimes. For a material to be defined as
self-healing, it is necessary that the healing process occurs without human
intervention.
Self-healing, how it works? If a tiny hole/crack appears in the aircraft (e.g. due to
wear and tear, fatigue, a stone striking the plane etc.), epoxy resin would 'bleed'
from embedded vessels near the hole/crack and quickly seal it up, restoring
structural integrity. By mixing dye into the resin, any 'self-mends' could be made to
show as colored patches that could easily be pinpointed during subsequent ground
inspections, and a full repair carried out if necessary. In tests, the self-healed
composite material regained as much as 75 percent of its original strength.

As well as the obvious safety benefits, this breakthrough could make it possible to
design lighter airplanes in the future. This would lead to fuel savings, cutting costs
for airlines and passengers and reducing carbon emissions too.

Introduction:
Self-healing can be dened as the ability of a material to heal (recover/repair)
damages automatically and autonomously, that is, without any external
intervention. Many common terms such as self-repairing, autonomic-healing, and
autonomic-repairing are used to dene such a property in materials. Incorporation
of self-healing properties in manmade materials very often cannot perform the selfhealing action without an external trigger. Thus, self-healing can be of the
following two types: 1) autonomic (without any intervention) ,2) nonautonomic
(needs human intervention/external triggering).
Causes of aircraft failure:
Commonly, failures are associated with stress concentrations, which can occur for
several reasons including:
1. Design errors, (e.g. the presence of holes, notches, and tight fillet radii).
2. The microstructure of the material may contain voids, inclusions etc.
3. Corrosive attack of the material, (e.g. pitting, can also generate a local stress
concentration).
Common failure modes of aircraft:
Fatigue.
Ductile or overload.
Corrosion.
Stress corrosion.
Hydrogen embrittlement.
Excessive yielding.
Overheating/fire.
There are types of failures in aircraft also namely:

1)normal failure.
2)medium failure,
3)catastrophic failure.
A normal failure is a small failure which occurs generally in every 10^3 hours of
an aircraft and the aircraft can complete its mission if it is a normal failure.
A medium failure is a some more damaged than the normal and immediate
assistance is required and the aircraft should be landed.
Catastrophic failure is the failure in which the entire aircraft goes down any
assistance is also waste and the aircraft should be removed.
Self-healing materials:
Self-healing materials are a class of smart materials that have the structurally
incorporated ability to repair damage caused by mechanical usage over time.
Self-healing polymers and fiber-reinforced polymer composites possess the
ability to heal in response to damage wherever and whenever it occurs in the
material.

All classes of polymers, from thermosets to thermoplastics to elastomers,

have potential for self-healing.
Figure 1 shows the stretchable self-healing polymer and the figure 2 shows
the micro capsule releasing a healing agent.

Figure 1: stretchable self-healing polymer

Figure 2: Micro capsules releasing a healing agent

Normally what happens is if any modes of failure occur structurally then the
gas or liquid comes from the tube and structural damaged gets sealed.

The inspiration comes from biological systems, which have the ability to
heal after being wounded. Initiation of cracks and other types of damage on
a microscopic level has been shown to change thermal, electrical, and
acoustical properties, and eventually lead to whole scale failure of the
material. Usually, cracks are mended by hand, which is unsatisfactory
because cracks are often hard to detect. A material that can intrinsically
correct damage caused by normal usage could lower costs of a number of
different industrial processes through longer part lifetime, reduction of
inefficiency over time caused by degradation, as well as prevent costs

incurred by material failure. For a material to be strictly defined as selfhealing, it is necessary that the healing process occurs without human
intervention. Some examples shown below, however, include healing
polymers that require intervention to initiate the healing process.
Types of healing polymers:
Polymer breakdown: From a molecular perspective, traditional polymers
yield to mechanical stress through cleavage of sigma bonds. While newer
polymers can yield in other ways, traditional polymers typically yield
through homolytic or heterolytic bond cleavage. The factors that determine
how a polymer will yield include: type of stress, chemical properties
inherent to the polymer, level and type of solvation, and temperature. From a
macromolecular perspective, stress induced damage at the molecular level
leads to larger scale damage called microcracks. A microcrack is formed
where neighboring polymer chains have been damaged in close proximity,
ultimately leading to the weakening of the fiber as a whole.
Homolytic bond cleavage:
Polymers have been observed to undergo homolytic bond cleavage through
the use of radical reporters such as DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl)
and PMNB (pentamethylnitrosobenzene.) When a bond is cleaved
homolytically, two radical species are formed which can recombine to repair
damage or can initiate other homolytic cleavages which can in turn lead to
more damage. Figure 1 shows the Homolytic bond cleavage of polymer
(methyl methacrylate).

Figure 1: homolytic bond cleavage of polymer (methyl methacrylate)

Heterolytic bond cleavage:

Polymers have also been observed to undergo heterolytic bond cleavage

through isotope labeling experiments. When a bond is cleaved
heterolytically, cationic and anionic species are formed which can in turn
recombine to repair damage, can be quenched by solvent, or can react
destructively with nearby polymers, figure 2 shows the Heterolytic bond
cleavage of polyethylene glycol.

Figure 2: Heterolytic bong cleavage of polyethylene glycol

Reversible bond cleavage:

Certain polymers yield to mechanical stress in an atypical, reversible
manner. Diels-Alder-based polymers undergo a reversible cycloaddition,
where mechanical stress cleaves two sigma bonds in a retro Diels-Alder
reaction. This stress results in additional pi-bonded electrons as opposed to
radical or charged moieties.

Supramolecular breakdown:
Supramolecular polymers are composed of monomers that interact noncovalently. Common interactions include hydrogen bonds, metal
coordination, and van der Waals forces. Mechanical stress in supramolecular
polymers causes the disruption of these specific non-covalent interactions,
leading to monomer separation and polymer breakdown.

Reversible healing polymers:

Reversible systems are polymeric systems that can revert to the initial state
whether it is monomeric, oligomeric, or non-cross-linked. Since the polymer
is stable under normal condition, the reversible process usually requires an

external stimulus for it to occur. For a reversible healing polymer, if the

material is damaged by means such as heating and reverted to its
constituents, it can be repaired or "healed" to its polymer form by applying
the original condition used to polymerize it.
Covalently bonded system:
Diels-Alder and Retro-Diels-Alder Among the examples of reversible
healing polymers, the Diels-Alder (DA) reaction and its Retro-Diels-Alder
(RDA) analogue seems to be very promising due to its thermal reversibility.
In general, the monomer containing the functional groups such as furan or
maleimide form two carbon-carbon bonds in a specific manner and construct
the polymer through DA reaction. This polymer, upon heating, breaks down
to its original monomeric units via RDA reaction and then reforms the
polymer upon cooling or through any other conditions that were initially
used to make the polymer. During the last few decades, two types of
reversible polymers have been studied: (I) polymers where the pendant
groups, such as furan or maleimide groups, cross-link through successive
DA coupling reactions; (ii) polymers where the multifunctional monomers
link to each other through successive DA coupling reactions.
Cross-linked polymers:
In this type of polymer, the polymer forms through the cross linking of the
pendant groups from the linear thermoplastics. For example, Saegusa et al.
have shown the reversible cross-linking of modified poly(Nacetylethyleneimine) s containing either maleimide or furancarbonyl pendant
moideties. The reaction is shown in Scheme 3. They mixed the two
complementary polymers to make a highly cross-linked material through DA
reaction of furan and maleimide units at room temperature, as the crosslinked polymer is more thermodynamically stable than the individual
starting materials. However, upon heating the polymer to 80 C for two
hours in a polar solvent, two monomers were regenerated via RDA reaction,
indicating the breaking of polymers. This was possible because the heating
energy provided enough energy to go over the energy barrier and results in
the two monomers. Cooling the two starting monomers, or damaged
polymer, to room temperature for 7 days healed and reformed the polymer.
Self-healing concepts:

There are different methods to effect healing that are applicable for each
individual mode of damage as well as each unique damaged material. Selfhealing has been demonstrated by some of these conceptual approaches:
Capsule-based healing systems.
Vascular healing systems.
Intrinsic healing polymers.
Carbon Nano tubes (CNTs).
Microencapsulated Healing systems.
Hollow tube approach
SLIPS
Direct Ink Writing
Discrete channels

Capsule- based healing system:

Capsules containing the healing agents and other chemicals are distributed
throughout the material. If a breakage occurs, the capsules release their contents
causing a chemical reaction to "heal" the breakage. If the amount of damage is

microscopic, capsule-based is the best option

Figure 1: Sequester healing agents in capsule-based system.

Vascular healing systems:

Vascular systems use networks of refillable channels (like capillaries, veins and
arteries) within the material to deliver the healing agent to the site of damage and
polymerizes to the breakage point. Vascular networks offer exceptional healing
efficiency and vast possibilities.

Figure 2: Refillable channels in vascular system.

Hollow tube approach:
For the first method, fragile glass capillaries or fibers are imbedded within a
composite material. (Note: this is already a commonly used practice for
strengthening materials. See Fiber-reinforced plastic.) The resulting porous
network is filled with monomer. When damage occurs in the material from regular
use, the tubes also crack and the monomer is released into the cracks. Other tubes
containing a hardening agent also crack and mix with the monomer, causing the
crack to be healed. There are many things to take into account when introducing
hollow tubes into a crystalline structure. First to consider is that the created
channels may compromise the load bearing ability of the material due to the
removal of load bearing material. Also, the channel diameter, degree of branching,
location of branch points, and channel orientation are some of the main things to
consider when building up microchannels within a material. Materials that dont
need to withstand much mechanical strain, but want self-healing properties, can
introduce more microchannels than materials that are meant to be load bearing.
There are two types of hollow tubes: discrete channels, and interconnected
channels.
Discrete channels:
Discrete channels can be built independently of building the material and are
placed in an array throughout the material. When creating these microchannels,

one major factor to take into account is that the closer the tubes are together, the
lower the strength will be, but the more efficient the recovery will be. A sandwich
structure is a type of discrete channels that consists of tubes in the center of the
material, and heals outwards from the middle. The stiffness of sandwich structures
is high, making it an attractive option for pressurized chambers. For the most part
in sandwich structures, the strength of the material is maintained as compared to
vascular networks. Also, material shows almost full recovery from damage.
Direct Ink Writing:
The Direct Ink Writing (DIW) technique is a controlled extrusion of viscoelastic
inks to create three-dimensional interconnected networks. It works by first setting
organic ink in a defined pattern. Then the structure is infiltrated with a material like
an epoxy. This epoxy is then solidified, and the ink can be sucked out with a
modest vacuum, creating the hollow tubes.

Microcapsule healing:
This method is similar in design to the hollow tube approach. Monomer is
encapsulated and embedded within the thermosetting polymer. When the crack
reaches the microcapsule, the capsule breaks and the monomer bleeds into the
crack, where it can polymerize and mend the crack.
Figure 3: Depiction of crack propagation through microcapsule-imbedded material.
Monomer microcapsules are represented by pink circles and catalyst is shown by
purple dots.
A good way to enable multiple healing events is to use living (or unterminated
chain-ends) polymerization catalysts. If the walls of the capsule are created too
thick, they may not fracture when the crack approaches, but if they are too thin,
they may rupture prematurely. In order for this process to happen at room
temperature, and for the reactants to remain in a monomeric state within the
capsule, a catalyst is also imbedded into the thermoset. The catalyst lowers the
energy barrier of the reaction and allows the monomer to polymerize without the
addition of heat. The capsules (often made of wax) around the monomer and the
catalyst are important maintain separation until the crack facilitates the reaction.

There are many challenges in designing this type of material. First, the reactivity of
the catalyst must be maintained even after it is enclosed in wax. Additionally, the
monomer must flow at a sufficient rate (have low enough viscosity) to cover the
entire crack before it is polymerized, or full healing capacity will not be reached.
Finally, the catalyst must quickly dissolve into monomer in order to react
efficiently and prevent the crack from spreading further.
This process has been demonstrated with dicyclopentadiene (DCPD) and Grubbs'
catalyst (benzylidene-bis(tricyclohexylphosphine)dichlororuthenium). Both DCPD
and Grubbs' catalyst are imbedded in an epoxy resin. The monomer on its own is
relatively unreactive and polymerization does not take place. When a microcrack
reaches both the capsule containing DCPD and the catalyst, the monomer is
released from the coreshell microcapsule and comes in contact with exposed
catalyst, upon which the monomer undergoes ring opening metathesis
polymerization (ROMP). The metathesis reaction of the monomer involves the
severance of the two double bonds in favor of new bonds. The presence of the
catalyst allows for the energy barrier (energy of activation) to be lowered, and the
polymerization reaction can proceed at room temperature. The resulting polymer
allows the epoxy composite material to regain 67% of its former strength. Grubbs'
catalyst is a good choice for this type of system because it is insensitive to air and
water, thus robust enough to maintain reactivity within the material. Using a live
catalyst is important to promote multiple healing actions. The major drawback is
the cost. It was shown that using more of the catalyst corresponded directly to
higher degree of healing. Ruthenium is quite costly, which makes it impractical for
commercial applications.

Figure 3: Depiction of crack propagation through microcapsule-imbedded

material. Monomer microcapsules are represented by pink circles and catalyst is
shown by purple dots.

Carbon Nano tubes (CNTs):

By infusing a polymer with electrically conductive carbon Nano tubes once a crack
is located, an electrical charge is sent to the area in order to heat up the carbon
Nano tubes and in turn melt an embedded healing agent that will flow into and seal
the crack with a 70 percent recovery in strength.

Figure 4: Carbon Nano tubes healing system

Advantages:
Effectively reducing the weight of planes and thus both their fuel needs and
carbon emissions.
Higher volume of healing agent is available to repair damage.
Different activation methods/types of resin can be used.
Visual inspection of the damaged site is feasible.
Hollow fibers can easily be mixed and tailored with the conventional
reinforcing fibers.

Disadvantages:
Fibers must be broken to release the

healing agent

Low-viscosity resin must be used to facilitate fiber infiltration.

 Multistep fabrication is required.

Conclusion:
Self-healing approaches applied in composite materials to-date have
primarily been bio inspired.
A more recent advance is the detailed study of natural healing to allow true
biometric self-healing.
Tailored placement of healing components and the adoption of biometric
vascular networks for self-healing are very active research topics at the
cutting edge of self-healing.
Future scope:
A self-healing aircraft could be available in the near future, an epoxy
resin that bleeds from embedded vessels near the holes or cracks and
quickly seals them up, restoring structural integrity.
As well as the obvious safety benefits, this breakthrough could make it
possible to design lighter aero planes in the future.
This would lead to fuel savings, cutting costs for airlines and passengers and
reducing carbon emissions too.
References:
1. Swapan Kumar Ghosh Self-healing Materials: Fundamentals, Design
Strategies, and Applications.
2. Bourzac, Katherine First Self-Healing Coatings (http:/ / www.
technology review. com/ business/ 21812/? a=f). technologyreview.com.
December 12, 2008.
3. Self-healing material Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
oldid=622955021.
4. Weiner, S. and Wagner, H.D. (1998) Annual Review of Materials
Science, 28.